[Gallup Korea] Lee’s approval rating hits new low of 38%

Sep 11, 2026, 01:15 pm

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President Lee Jae-myung and first lady Kim Hye-kyung disembark from Air Force One at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam on Sept. 10 after completing a state visit to France. / Yonhap

President Lee Jae-myung’s job approval rating has fallen to a record low of 38%, according to a poll released Sept. 11.

A Gallup Korea survey of 1,000 eligible voters aged 18 and older nationwide conducted from Sept. 8 to 10 showed that 38% positively evaluated Lee’s performance, down 2 percentage points from the previous week.

His approval rating has declined for three consecutive weeks since the fourth week of August. His disapproval rating remained unchanged at 51%.

By region, Lee’s approval rating in Seoul was the lowest at 29%, down 9 percentage points from 38% in the previous survey. His rating in Gwangju and the Jeolla provinces also fell 7 percentage points to 60% from 67%.

Approval stood at 38% in Incheon and Gyeonggi Province, 38% in Daejeon, Sejong and the Chungcheong provinces, 34% in Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province, and 35% in Busan, Ulsan and South Gyeongsang Province.

By age group, negative assessments outnumbered positive ones across all age groups. Approval was lowest among respondents aged 18 to 29 and those aged 70 and older, both at 31%.

Even among voters in their 40s and 50s, considered key support bases for Lee, approval stood at 45% in both groups, trailing disapproval ratings of 46% among those in their 40s and 50% among those in their 50s.

Diplomacy was the most frequently cited reason for positively evaluating Lee’s performance at 19%, followed by the economy and people’s livelihoods at 13%, overall good performance at 6%, and communication and job competence at 5% each. Real estate policy and working hard or making an effort each accounted for 4%, while policies for ordinary people and welfare accounted for 3%.

Among reasons for negative assessments, real estate policy ranked first at 24%, followed by personnel appointments at 16%, the economy and people’s livelihoods at 10%, moral issues and avoiding his own trials at 6%, overall poor performance at 4%, and national defense and security and reducing prosecutorial powers at 3% each.

“Mentions of personnel issues increased further, indicating the repercussions surrounding ministerial nominees ahead of their confirmation hearings,” Gallup Korea said. “Real estate has remained the most frequently cited reason for negative assessments since the fourth week of July.”

In party approval ratings, the Democratic Party of Korea remained unchanged at 38%, while the People Power Party slipped 1 percentage point to 29%.

The Reform Party stood at 3%, while the Rebuilding Korea Party and the Progressive Party each recorded 2%. Respondents with no party affiliation accounted for 26%.

The survey was conducted through telephone interviews using randomly selected virtual mobile phone numbers. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level and a response rate of 9.4%. Further details are available on the website of the National Election Survey Deliberation Commission.

Hong Sun-mi

#approval rating #housing #economy #cabinet